Mebbin State Forest

27 - 28 September 1997

With fine weather predicted for the week-end, a keen crew of club members were eager to head for the hills west of Murwillumbah. The line up consisted of:- starting with the MYs, Royce J with Kay and Zoe - 83 turbo wagon, Troy K - 84 turbo wagon, the mighty Brumbies, Jeff and Sue K - MY 80, Brad and Judy G - MY89, Gaven McG - MY 85 and myself MY 83. The L-series line up was Ralph and Marilyn C - 93, Danny and Beth W - 92, Arnold and Pat S - 89, Ben W - 91 and Ray L - 89. The Hi-Luxs of Ron and young Wade P and Rob P rounded off the team.

As we were leaving the meeting point we heard Ben calling on the CB, he was a few minutes down the road. Royce, being Tail-end Charlie, was able to wait for him. Our first stop was for morning tea at Brumies Lookout. It is a steep 500 metre climb to the top, where you gain good views of the peak of Mt. Warning to the north, but the best view is on the way up looking south and west to the valley below and up to the volcanic rim. We then proceeded to the camp spot at Mebbin where we set up camp and had lunch. To our surprise, Ray L arrived, said he made a last minute decision to come for the week-end and took pot luck that he would find us. Our afternoon run involved a drive on the nearby creek loop. Since our last visit the tracks had been graded and were in good order. The usual wet spots and creek crossings were still tricky and a bit of towing was required. Everyone soon found their sea legs. Ben’s bull bar with the lower cow catcher proved a handicap in these types of conditions. He’s been threatening to cut it off for a long time now and today the final decision was made. Ron used his Hi-Lux’ rear bar to good effect sliding nicely off a fallen log to guide himself through. Sue, driving the Red Brumby, did a great job getting through a harder section, her secret - windows up and lots of momentum.

Oops !

We called back to camp for an afternoon tea and then soon set off for another nearby loop. At one point we had three cars stuck all at once in different parts on this section. Team Editorial Danny and Beth have all the action on film. The next spot of interest was a creek crossing that we later aptly named The Rhino Pit. I had to go first being the front car, it looked nasty. The exit was the problem, it had deep wheel ruts. With no results after a few attempts, Ron snigged me out backwards. Then Ron had a try with similar results. This time I did the snig, breaking my 10 year-old strap that was a bit tired anyway. Time was getting on by this stage so we set off back to camp. The Brumby had wet electricals and was not running well and when we stopped to collect some firewood it would not run over 2000 RPM under load. To save time Ben offered to tow me back the few kms to camp. The experts Royce and Troy set about finding the problem. The throttle position sensor was wet and with a clean and spray the problem was fixed. Then it was time for day trippers, Kesbys, Shoemakers and Gaven  to say their goodbyes and head for home.

Arnold, Sue and Danny - through the bog !

The evening was spent relaxing and chatting around the campfire. Ralph and Marilyn gave us a rundown on their afternoon run with Ray to the nearby Clarrie Hall dam. Sunday dawned fine and clear. By 8:00am Rob P had arrived with sausages to be BBQd for breakfast. The plan for the morning was to do some more exploring. We said our goodbyes to Ralph & Marilyn as they had to leave early. Our first stop was the Giant Ironbark tree, approximately 65 metres tall with a circumference of 1.7 metres. It was good to see the early loggers left trees like these. After a steep climb Ron got a flat rear tyre on the Hi-Lux. He had let the pressures down the day before for the Rhino Pit. Still the temptation of the Rhino Pit was too much for Rob but getting there was bit slow as The Mighty Hi-Lux got bogged in some deep ruts on the way and had to be snigged out by the even mightier Brumby. Still, Rob forged ahead to the Rhino Pit, with the same results as yesterday. The ruts were just too deep and this time Ron did the snigging and the Hi-Lux came out forward. All under way again until Ron straddled more deep ruts that put the Hi-Lux on a sharp sideways lean. Rob did a quick reverse snig and they were on their way again.

Oh, What a Feeling .... Hilux powered by Subaru !

We all set off back to camp to have morning tea and pack up. The plan for the home run was to travel via Clarrie Hall dam for lunch. On the way there Ray stopped to change a flat tyre. For the drive home most of the convoy travelled on the scenic route via the Currimundi Valley. Once on the highway Ray stopped for another flat tyre. Two on one trip was a bit rough but Ben was able to lend him his spare. From there we all said our goodbyes and set off on our different routes home. All in all a great week-end.

I'm sure there's another Suba down here somewhere !

David Martin SC180